Sunday, July 25, 2010

Day Shift TV Comments: Sunday At The Brickyard

There are three solid hours of TV coverage leading up to the debut of the new NASCAR on ESPN team at noon ET on Sunday. The schedule is listed on the left side of our main page.

NASCAR Now at 9AM is a big preview show for ESPN. Nicole Briscoe will be hosting from Indy. Expect a lot of familiar faces to show-up in this program. Briscoe has been having a very solid season as a fulltime host for this series.

Once ESPN is done, SPEED steps-in with RaceDay. The network recently announced that Darrell Waltrip will be added to the panel this weekend. That puts Waltrip, Kyle Petty and Kenny Wallace as the group for host John Roberts to control.

This show has been a bizarre mix of top-notch news and interviews from the infield with a rah-rah pro-NASCAR panel since Petty has been gone. Kenny Wallace has been having a rough time fitting-in since the departure of Jimmy Spencer. Bringing Spencer back for a couple of shows certainly did not help.

In the new dynamic on the SPEED Stage, Petty speaks to issues while Wallace yells at fans and tells them what is right. Inserting Waltrip into the line-up certainly raises some eyebrows for a show that is really made for two panelists.

It should be interesting to watch these shows and see the ramp-up for the big race. We welcome your comments on these topics. To add your opinion, just click on the comments button below. This is a family-friendly website, please keep that in mind when posting. Thanks for stopping by.

13 comments:

On Speed, Petty is cool, but Waltrip and Wallace are too polarizing, and do not seem quite right. They need to stick to the "fair and balanced" network for NASCAR TV analysis and commentary. Besides, weren't they supposed to be gone by now?

I was really hoping that Raceday would be Waltrip free for awhile. Missed having Kyle there on race mornings. He still voices his opinions and hasn't let the powers that be, dictate what he says week to week... at least so far.

Why cant DW just go away for a little bit. We cant miss him if he is always there.

I will do my normal routine. Watch NN because it is on early on the west coast and they usually do a good job.

Will not watch RD or maybe FF through to find something interesting...most likely a Wendy or Hermie piece.

A side comment. I have been watching the Tour de France. I do not follow bike racing, I do not even ride a bike. I only watch the Tour because it is fascinating from a competitive stand point and offers breathtaking scenery. How is it that 2 guys in a booth,ala F1with 3 guys, can provide excitement, amusement and educate while never talking down to the viewer.

I'm going to check out NN. I'msure they won't have any highlights from ORP since theydidn't see them the first time.At least the scenery is good.Be back at 1 for the green. Don'twant to listen to the Wallace'sand Waldrip drivel.

Kyle Petty has found his calling after a great career in racing. The parting of ways from his long time family racing program had to have been a hard pill to swallow for Kyle.The rift between Kyle and his Father is sad and maybe one day things will be better. But- when Kyle went from Racer to race announcer he began to shine again. He came out of the funk and brought a fresh face and voice to the table.I was hanging with him his first few days of being on board with TNT and he was like a kid in a candy store at the TV compound.The funnest moment was when he went into the dining tent and saw all the dinner laid out along the tables. Hi remarked, "Wow! you guys have food up here, there is hardly any in the garage!" He then proceeded to dig in and like most of us enjoyed having all that food for a change at a race track.His announce skills are only topped by his knowledge of race cars and yes, Kyle has always been a "know it all" so now that "downside" has finally been a plus for him. Knowing it all in the booth without over stressing things is what he has manage to balance unlike some of the other so called "know it all" burnt out crew chiefs or racers.He will continue to shine on TV and I am happy for him as Kyle really is not only a great person put a person that puts a lot back into the sport that has raised him.

My comments are regarding the low TV Ratings this year for Sprint Cup.

I feel that the somewhat poor overall coverage during the Fox portion of the season in addition to all the commercials every week make for a poor viewing experience and that has affected the ratings this year (and TNT ratings were down too)....but has anyone said anything about the earlier start times this year maybe having an affect on the ratings. The past couple years we were told the later start times were implemented to gain west coast viewers. This year start times are earlier and ratings are down. Just wondering.